PALM BEACH, FL – The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has settled two lawsuits against two separate marketing firms, Devumi, LLC and Sunday Riley, both of which were accused of deceptive online marketing tactics designed to dupe consumers into making false assumptions based on user generated content and activity. In the first case, Devumi, LLC agreed to settle the FTC’s complaint challenging the sale of fake indicators of social media influence. In the second case, … [Read more...]
Think Your Domains Are Safe by Using Two Factor Authentication? Think Again
PALM BEACH, FL – Sometimes I read stories that really make me think (and worry). For those who have great domains under management, you might feel super-safe by using “two factor authentications”, where your mobile device is used to verify each login you make to your registry account by sending you a text message for confirmation. Two Factor Authentication (2FA) What is two factor authentication (2FA)? I’ve often thought how horrible it might be if someone got … [Read more...]
U.S. GDPR: The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) Goes Into Effect January 2020
PALM BEACH, FL - The US's answer to European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), enacted in 2018, will create new consumer rights relating to the access to, deletion of, and sharing of personal information that is collected by businesses. It also requires California's Attorney General to solicit broad public participation and adopt regulations to further the CCPA's purposes. The proposed regulations will establish … [Read more...]
Follow the Money: IRS Takes Down Largest Child Exploit Domain by Tracing Bitcoin
PALM BEACH, FL – The largest child exploitation website on the Internet “Welcome to Video” which, according to GitHub was using a dark-web address of “mt3plrzdiyqf6jim.onion” was seized and/or shut down last week resulting in over 300 arrests. According to the Department of Justice, the service was the largest child sexual exploitation market by volume of content. Particularly interesting was the way the sites owners were traced as I have been contemplating my first … [Read more...]
“Unstoppable Domains” Launches “Dot Crypto” to Create “Uncensorable” Internet
PALM BEACH, FL – A company called “Unstoppable Domains”, a San Francisco-based startup which recently secured $4 million in venture capital funding says it is launching a new gTLD domain on the “.crypto” extension which is intended to provide users with “human-readable” wallet addresses, intended to simplify the process of sending and receiving funds. Potentially even more interesting is the vision behind Unstoppable Domains and their desire is to create what they call … [Read more...]
GrubHub’s Aggressive Customer Micro-Site Domain Strategy Makes Bad Situation Worse
PALM BEACH, FL – Most of the dust has now settled, but back in late June/early July of this year, restaurant ordering service GrubHub, found itself boiling in hot water when a domain name strategy of building ‘micro-sites’ or 'landing pages', using what you could call, confusingly similar domain names of its customers, was called out in media headlines far and wide across the Internet. Grubhub Inc. GRUB (NYSE) is a Chicago-based online and/or mobile food ordering service … [Read more...]
Businesses With 15+ Employees on Hook for ADA Compliance, Growing Lawsuit Trend
PALM BEACH, FL – If your business employs more than 15 people, it might be a good time to ensure your website complies with the rules required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). These standards state that all electronic and information technology must be accessible to people with disabilities. The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed by President George H.W. Bush in 1990. Over the past few years, thousands of lawsuits have been filed against websites for … [Read more...]
Edmonton Police Seize Three Canadian Domain Names from Fake Job Scam
PALM BEACH, FL – Three more domain names have vanished from the Internet due to a fake job scam; something frequently being used to steal money from unsuspecting victims. According to Canadian Yahoo News, Edmonton police have seized three Internet domains as part of an investigation involving fake job ads posted on the employment site Indeed.com. Police say the scam has cost victims over $240k. Visitors of the Canadian sites (which were not disclosed) are now … [Read more...]
Savvy Business Owners Know That Great Domain Names Can Grow Your Business
PALM BEACH, FL – I enjoy seeing great use-cases for domain name acquisitions where an end user recognizes the power of a great domain name and how they can help you grow your business. There has never been as much noise and competition to break-through on the Internet than there is right now, and a great domain name can be the ‘differentiator’ in how you stand out in a sea of consumer choice. For example, in reviewing the DNJournal.com year-to-date sales list, you’ll find … [Read more...]
German Police Raid Hosting Facility Dubbed “CyberBunker”; Seize Domains, 200 Servers
BERLIN – Thirteen people were arresting during a raid in Germany on September 27, 2019. According to Brian Krebs, a security journalist and investigative reporter for Krebs on Security, the raid targeted the physical premises of a Dark Web hosting operation that described itself as a “bulletproof” hosting provider that was willing to provide web site hosting services to any business, no matter how illegal or unsavory. This past Friday, 600 military equipped officers … [Read more...]
22 Year Old Adult Domain “Orgasms.com” Sells for $19,000 on Flippa Marketplace
PALM BEACH, FL – Someone just ‘scored’ an easy entry point into the adult webmaster business with the acquisition of premium adult domain name Orgasms.com for $19,000 when it sold on Sunday, September 29, 2019. The domain name Orgasms.com shows a 'best-guess estimate' of $143,000 US on domain appraisal site Estibot.com. The domain name was listed for sale with a description including: Here is your chance to own the ULTRA premium adult domain name: Orgasms.com! The … [Read more...]
Own a Patent? Your Web Address and Site May Need to Reflect It Properly to Protect It
PALM BEACH, FL – I’ve registered a few trademarks before, but I have never registered an actual patent; they are much more complicated, and unlike “phrases”, “symbols”, or “words”, which can easily be trademarked and filed online for a few hundred dollars, a patent is an “invention”, “method” or “process” (think Google’s algorithm) and there is a ton more paperwork involved including diagrams of how the patent works and functions clearly detailing its uniqueness. There are … [Read more...]
Top 10 Ways to Market Your Small Business Online; Do-It-Yourself Marketing Strategies
WEST PALM BEACH - Every once in a while I'll come out with a list of goodies for those who look for website owner tips. Below is a list of these including the top ten best and/or most popular ways (in my opinion) to market your small business on the Internet including both do-it-yourself strategies and for those which aren't, reasons why you might be better off hiring a fully managed solution provider or Internet marketing company to do it for you. Some of these ideas you … [Read more...]
Search Optimization or Sponsored Search, Which One Is Better for My Business?
NEW YORK, NY – Whether a company embarks on typical optimization processes or just gives in and goes straight for Google’s recently re-branded “Google Ads” program is probably a question best answered only by someone who has been watching both of them evolve over the years, because both of them do work, and both can be used to grow your business exponentially, but figuring out which one works better or which will cost more is something the average business owner just has no … [Read more...]
What Is Web Site Hosting and Why Do I Need It? Seems Like A Monthly Rip Off
NEW YORK – Once in a while I come across a person, customer or prospect that doesn’t understand what website hosting is and why they might have to pay for it. They seem to feel that hosting is some unknown, unexplained add-on which seems confusing at best or a rip-off at worst. The particular people seem to think a website just 'exists' out there on the Inter-webs or are somehow part of the World Wide Web; they have trouble understanding what website hosting is and why … [Read more...]